Twilight Circlet
by Seriyan
Summary: Rukia is taken to her innerworld by Sode no Shirayuki. The innerworld is slowly merging with the Soul Society. It's up to her friends to save her before...the end. Can they make it in time?
1. Battle

**Hey Ya'll, The other day, my friend put the song 'In the Land of Twilight, Under the Moon' on my ipod for me… and like I had it on repeat because I like the song, and well… this story is based off two things, mainly the dream I had while listening to the song* and the new bleach arc, with the Zanpakutou materialization and all that.**

***The part that is based off the dream, I'm going to mark the section, but while you read it, I recommend listening to the song during that portion.**

**The song is from .Hack, I do believe… Correct me if I'm wrong. But anyway, it's like… pretty and stuff.**

**As always, thank you to my beta, Saint Sky, because she is an awesome person.**

**Anyway… here we go!**

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* * *

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_In the heat of battle, once can never be too cautious. A warrior must be alert and ready to attack or defend. They must have swift reflexes and most importantly, they must expect the unexpected, be prepared for anything…because at any given moment…something can go wrong._

An ancient proverb that is the first and most basic lesson taught at the Shinigami academy. It is something that has been ingrained in the heads of all young Shinigami-to be in training; reason being that when they reach a mature age as a respected shinigami, it is second nature to them, just like breathing.

_Expect the unexpected._

If this is something that a warrior is taught and reminded of so much, the why did the materialization of the zanpakutou bring such a shock and chaos to the Soul Society?

The reason is because the Shinigami so focused on their preparations for the war against Aizen they were too distracted to listen to the cries of their zanpakutou. After all, a zanpakutou is simply part of their wielder. Nothing as such had ever happened before. Why would such an unheard of even happen now of all times?

It is because of Muramasaand his evil scheme. The shinigami had no clue just exactly was about to hit them…full force with no attempts to stop it.

* * *

_Kin… Kin… Kin…_

Rukia pondered this as the blade of her katana clashed with the pure white of Sode no Shirayuki. Her zanpakutou, her beautiful zanpakutou, was trying to kill her.

"Please! Sode no Shirayuki! Stop this!" Rukia begged, silently praying that her zanpakutou would see the light, so to speak.

"You no longer control me. I dance to my own whim now." Came the harsh reply.

"Please don't do this!"

"I'll do as I please." Shirayuki snapped.

Rukia's blade was slipping. She knew that she couldn't hold Shirayuki back much longer. Quickly, just seconds before the pure white blade sliced her face, she jumped back out of range of a direct cut.

"I am free of your control. You have no right to stop me. I am not a part of you anymore." Shirayuki said as Rukia landed.

"Fine, but why are you hurting innocent people?" Rukia asked, staring her zanpakutou down.

"I am simply doing as I please." Shirayuki continued the stare down. "And I will not look lightly on anyone who interferes."

Rukia sighed and closed her eyes. "To be honest, I don't want to fight you but–"

She was cut off as Shirayuki disappeared from where she had stood and came straight at her, a whip of ice forming in her right hand.

Rukia barely dodged in time. The icy whip hit the ground and formed a block of ice shaped in an arc where Rukia had previously stood.

In mid air Rukia drew her sword. "Mae, Sode no Shirayuki!"

Landing, she examined her sword. Nothing had happened. She held it in front of her. "It won't even go into its shikai form?" she asked.

A few feet away, Shirayuki stood watching her, "Of course it won't." she said as if it should have been obvious. "After all, I no longer reside in that katana."

Rukia gasped and took a small step back as Shirayuki continued. "Up until now, you've had free reign over my powers as a zanpakutou. It was something that I permitted. But I also had no choice."

"You didn't have a choice?" Rukia cut in.

A white ribbon flashed in her vision. Rukia gasped as Shirayuki materialized the shikai form of the zanpakutou.

"But things are different now." Shirayuki replied, pointing the white blade at Rukia. "I am free to use my powers as I please. Until now, I'm sure you've considered my power to be your own. But you were mistaken. In reality, you're powerless to fight on your own. You are nothing without me."

"I've never thought of it as my own –"

"Some no Mai, Tsukishiro." Shirayuki cut Rukia off with the beautiful attack of the icy circle that destroys anything within it. As the ground beneath her began to glow, Rukia jumped out of the way as the tower of ice appeared.

"Impossible." Rukia gasped. She was truly stunned. She had never seen her zanpakutou with such a hateful look in her eyes. "Tsukishiro's ice tower –"

"It is supposed to reach up into the heavens within the area drawn out by your sword." Shirayuki said with her eyes closed. She cast Rukia a glance as she landed on a roof of a building. "Right?"

With a swing of her sword another circle appeared under Rukia, who jumped out of the way at the last minute. Only to find Shirayuki had appeared behind her.

"WAIT! SODE NO SHIRAYUKI!" Rukia screamed as an arctic blast sent her flying to the ground while Shirayuki landed elegantly on her feet.

Rukia crawled to her knees, breathing heavily. "Are you saying I can't do anything without you?" she asked, making a fist and rising to her feet, wobbling a bit at first. "Oh he who has ten-thousand wings and is crowned with the name of man. With truth and moderation, lightly scratch you nails against the wall of a dream that knows no sin. Hadou no Sanyuu-san, Soukatsui!"

Blue-fire shot out of Rukia's hands and flew at Shirayuki. A wall of blue fire crashed down on the beautiful white haired, blue eyed woman standing about three feet in front of her. The flames enveloped Shirayuki and stirred up a cloud of dust. As the dust began to clear, the area was glowing with an unnatural light. The flames began to clear and revealed… a pillar of ice protecting Shirayuki.

Rukia gasped, taken completely off guard. After all, fire is supposed to melt ice, right?

The ice shattered revealing an unharmed Shirayuki, who was wearing a smug grin.

"Sode no Shirayuki… you… you… the blue fire…how??" Rukia stammered.

"Are you surprised?" Shirayuki asked, sounding as if she were choking back laughter. "You clearly underestimate me." With a shrug, she continued, "It can't be helped. I'll just have to correct your way of thinking."

"B-B-But! Fire **MELTS** ice!!" Rukia blurted out before she could stop and think about who exactly she was talking to.

"And yet, you continue to underestimate me."

Shirayuki disappeared once more and came at Rukia from behind. At the last second, Rukia turned and blocked. The blade of the sword ringing from the impact, Rukia slid backwards; Shirayuki took to the air and sent spears of ice down at Rukia, who promptly dodged them.

As Rukia raced along the wall of the building, she gazed up at her zanpakutou.

_'My Katana. My beautiful Katana. She's so beautiful..'_

Rukia dodged more spears.

_'She's truly worthy of being called the most beautiful sword in the Soul Society… So why is she looking at me as if she hates me? I am her and she is me. Have I hurt her by keeping all of her power to myself? Is she right? Have I neglected her?' _Rukia wondered. Shirayuki and moved again. Rukia skidded to a halt and began searching around for her zanpakutou.

"Whenever you reflect the distant past… you leave yourself wide open for a direct attack." Shirayuki called. Directing her attack at Ichigo.

_'When did he get here?'_ Rukia wondered. "Stay back Ichigo. This is **my** fight. Stay out of it."

Ichigo blinked. "But Rukia."

"Sode no Shirayuki is my Zanpakutou, therefore, my responsibility. Stay out. I can take care of myself." Rukia said, getting between Shirayuki and Ichigo.

"If you must hate someone. Hate me." Rukia said, staring Shirayuki in the eyes.

"I do. I absolutely loathe you. But… in order to truly make you suffer… I must take out what you care about most. Your friends, your family, even your pride as a shinigami. All you need to do is watch."

Rukia closed her eyes and inhaled sharply, then released the air she took in. "I see. That's what I'd expect from my zanpakutou. You know exactly how to make me suffer. If I have offended you in any way, I'm truly sorry. You're correct; just what gives us shinigami the right to just order you about? You have thoughts and feelings just as we have." Rukia said. "I was proud to own such a beautiful zanpakutou."

"You don't own me."

"That's right, you're free. I hereby set you free."

Shirayuki was confused. "Huh?"

"So… please overcome your hatred." Rukia said, slowly raising her arms up in front of her. "I'm grateful for the time we had together."

"You're just going to live without me?"

"Yes, Even if I lose everything and I have to crawl across the earth… Even if I have to go back to Rukongai…" She took a few steps forward and began to slowly walk towards the beautiful spirit in front of her. Her mind began racing to her earliest memories with Sode no Shirayuki as, the incantation of kidou gracing over her lips "Masked with blood and flesh, under all creation, he has been crowned in the name of man…"

"Do you really think you can defeat me?"

Rukia barely heard Shirayuki as she continued. "Through the gap of the thunder carriage's wheels, have this light break into six pieces."

Shirayuki slowly began to panic. "What? Aren't you afraid of losing me?"

"Carve twin lotuses in the wall of blue fire! Wait within the fiery abyss in the distant heavens."

"W-WAIT!" Shirayuki yelled as she caused a rotating ball of ice to swirl around her.

Rukia kept walking towards the swirling and twisting frosty sphere. She entered it. The wind picked up.

Ichigo's robes and hair was ruffled by the harsh arctic wind.

"Hadou no Rokujyuu Ichi, Rukujyoukourou!" Rukia cried out loudly.

Rods of light pierced through the sphere and stuck through Rukia and Shirayuki. Shirayuki stared gaping at Rukia.

"I-I can't let you take away what I am supposed to protect." She said as she looked up at Shirayuki with sad eyes.

_'I am about to lose everything…'_

"What are you doing?"

_'Let it all go… Anger, hatred, sadness…You aren't me…You aren't a part of me…'_

"Don't!"

_'And I'll let you go…You were a part of me, Sode no Shirayuki…Your beauty…The power you gave me as a shinigami…The times we spent together in the past…'_

Images of Kaien flashed into Rukia's mind. The day she had first released her shikai… Kaien's cheers for her. Holding up the pure white zanpakutou. She had been so happy…

_'I give it all up… I forced both of us to bear a heavy burden…'_

"STOP IT."

A blue orb began to glow in Rukia's hands.

Shirayuki screamed "STOP IT!"

Rukia looked up at the taller woman with white hair and blue eyes… the one that she was trapped against thanks to the kido… Rukia's eyes watered with mixed emotions. "Sode no Shirayuki, I set you free."

The air around the females began to glow.

**"HADOU NO NANAJYUUSAN: SOREN SOKATSUI!!"** Rukia cried as she released the kido. The blue orb grew in size and soon both she and Shirayuki were engulfed in the blue fire. Fire and Ice encircled them with the light rods holding them in place. The conflict of elements caused an explosion. Each getting thrown in the opposite direction of the other.

"RUKIA!!" Ichigo screamed.

Shirayuki was stunned. She was unsure of how to feel. _'I can't believe it… You actually let me go…'_

_'Shinigami are too afraid to lose you…so we are no match for you in a fight. We care… We care for our zanpakutou as much as our own lives…'_

_'Kuchiki… Rukia…'_

_'Farewell… my fallen sword'_

Shirayuki reached for Rukia's hand. "KUCHIKI RUKIA!!"

Another hand stopped hers. "Do you plan on dying like this, Sode no Shirayuki?"

The icy woman froze… The smoke of the explosion rose up into the air…

Shirayuki watched helplessly as Rukia fell to the ground. "You're a disgrace, be gone." Muramasa said to her. Having no choice but to obey… Shirayuki disappeared… as Rukia hit the ground causing a cloud of dust to rise up into the air.

* * *

As the dust cleared, Rukia slowly crawled from the rubble and collapsed where she stood… Barely hearing the sounds of voices… belonging to Ichigo Muramasa, and Shirayuki. She heard the order for Shirayuki to leave… and Ichigo and Muramasa disappear off to fight before she was consumed by darkness.

Rukia opened her eyes to dim lighting in the Division Four Medical Area. She slowly sat up resting her elbows on her knees. Her head was pounding. She felt as if it would split in two. The events slowly falling into place. She had used kidou on Sode no Shirayuki; Muramasa had appeared. Rukia vaguely remembered seeing Ichigo go after him before she collapsed. She began to gently rub her temples, willing the stubborn headache to fade.

_'Sode no Shirayuki is gone,'_ she thought, making a failed attempt to turn over to her side. She couldn't; the pain was too great… too much… metaphorically, and physically.

"You shouldn't be moving like that when you are recovering." Unohana said as she entered the room, causing Rukia to jump. She relaxed as the medical captain began to examine her. As she worked, Unohana began to inform Rukia of what Mayuri-taicho had been planning, about using the shinigami's bodies to do research on the current events.

Rukia, weary from exhaustion, nodded and 'mhm'ed to the information, falling asleep before Unohana had finished. Unohana smiled briefly, and motherly. "Yes, sleep and recuperate, you'll feel better in the morning." She whispered as she turned off the light and shut the door.

* * *

The Shinigami scattered throughout the Seireitei, each desperate to find their zanpakutou. The Zanpakutou, on the other hand, were quite busy having their 'fun' by wreaking havoc on the Seireitei.

A figure stood alone at the top of a building watching the chaos. Shinigami ran wild in the streets like a heard of stampeding buffalo. Disorganized, unsure, surprised, vulnerable, and chaotic. Yamamoto-soutaicho and Kuchiki-taicho were missing, and the Seireitei was on the verge of being destroyed. It was a disgrace, really if one thought about it. The Gotei Thirteen were **supposed** to be better than that; stronger than that, but now… it appeared as if they needed more training. If they couldn't save the Seireitei from their own zanpakutou… Just how could…how could they defeat Aizen?

_'Where are you?'_

The figure clinched his fists and began to grind his teeth.

"Shiro-chan?" a female's voice, more specifically, Hinamori Momo's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"It's Hitsugaya-taicho, Momo," He replied, rather than greeted; his voice dry.

"Shiro-chan you're no fun – Hey! Look it's snowing!" she exclaimed.

Toushiro blinked and glanced at the tiny flurries dancing around his friend, and himself. "It's not Hyorinmaru." Toushiro replied, more to himself than to Momo.

"Not Hyorinmaru? Then who could it be?" Momo asked, shivering.

"Just think about how many ice-type zanpakutou are in the Seireitei and use the Process of Elimination." He answered, wrapping his haori around her.

"Ok… there's yours, Hyorinmaru… and Kuchiki Rukia's..." Momo said as she inhaled Toushiro's scent that lingered on the robe.

Hitsugaya, on the other hand, seemed quite comfortable in the dropping temperature. The white haired captain had his back to her.

"Ok, so it's me and Rukia Kuchiki." Toushiro replied. "I've already told you it's not Hyorinmaru…" he prompted.

"So… it must be hers… Sakura no Yuki… er… Sode… no Sakura Yuki?? Or something like that?" she asked.

Toushiro sighed, he really did like Momo as a person, and she was like family to him and all, but she could be so dense at times. "Sode no Shirayuki."

"Yeah, that." Momo said, flashing him a smile.

"You may want to go inside, Momo, it's getting colder." Toushiro said as the snow began to dance down a bit harder. The wind began to pick up, and the temperature did seem to drop a few degrees.

"But Shiro-chan – "

Momo was cut off as the ground began to shake. "What's going on?" Momo asked while Toushiro remained silent. Instead of replying, Toushiro instinctively shunpoed around and grabbed Momo, moving them safely to the next building over as an icy spear crashed into the spot they had just been standing at. The icy spears were coming from Division Four.

"Go on, Momo!" He yelled as he dodged another spear.

"Shiro-chan…" she started to protest while dodging another spear.

"GO ON MOMO!!" He yelled back in a tone that left no room for arguments.

Momo gave Toushiro one final worried glance over her shoulder before she shunpoed away. Toushiro remained in place until he was sure Momo was a safe distance away. He took a deep breath, drew his katana, and shunpoed towards the Division Four barracks…

* * *

As Momo dashed through the streets, tears streamed down her face. For the life of her, she couldn't understand why the zanpakutou rebelled. Tobiume had been there for her longer than she could remember.

_Ting…Ting…Ting…_

Momo stopped in her tracks and stayed there a moment before turning around. She knew who it was before looking. "Tobiume," she whispered, still crying. "Why?"

Tobiume smiled sweetly at her. "We've had some good times, but now… you must die." She said as she grabbed the ribbons the bells were attached to and jumped in the air spinning. Fire orbs of light blazed through the air as Tobiume directed her attack at Momo. Her smiled grew chillingly evil as she gathered energy for one finally attack. "Sayonara!" she said… and let the fire powered sphere fly…

* * *

As Toushiro entered the barracks of the Medical Division, a cold wind ripped through the hallway in a fierce _whoosh._

Frost glittered on the door frames and the windows. Except for one door… Three doors down from where he stood. Icicles hung like piercing daggers ready to fall and kill the victim. Snow gathered in the hallway outside the door. Toushiro had taken no more than two steps and a blood-curling scream echoed around the hallway and would have shaken Toushiro Hitsugaya to the bone, if that were a possible thing to do. It certainly had startled him, to say the least.

It took him a second to gather himself and pinpoint the location of the scream. Then it clicked. The shinigami in the room three doors down from where he stood was…

…

Kuchiki Rukia.

* * *

**Phew! 9 pages, that's a record first chapter for me! YAY ME!!**

**=D**

**Anyway, you know the drill… Review please?**

**I've already gotten the next three chapters planned out in my head so… all I have to do is type them. Um… that's all for now.**

**EDIT: I had to go and replace chapter one Again. Something odd happened. And it was gone. So…yeah… sorry about that.**


	2. Ice

**Eh… Chapter two's a bit weird… So… yeah… ^ ^U**

**I've been kinda out of it lately… so… if it doesn't make sense, I'm sorry… **

**OTL **

**…Epic fail**

* * *

_She stood alone in the snow and ice covered meadow. It was unnaturally silent; the only noise was the howling of the wind. Snow flurries whirled around in the wind, artic winds were battering her, tugging at her hair and robes, and almost knocking her over. She could barely see anything in front of her. Everything was hidden by the white veil of snow. She knew where she was. She didn't have to see to know this place. She knew there was a frosted forest and high mountains tall and proud in the distance, they always seemed to glitter with snow. She knew this place. She knew it like the back of her hand…Of course she would, why wouldn't she? It was her inner world after all. The place was familiar yet different at the same time. She didn't feel the presence of her zanpakutou… nor had it ever snowed this hard while she was there, but standing out the most…was the temperature. It had never been that cold. It was colder than normal… the frigid temperature dropping every second._

_It was so cold…_

_She was so cold, all the head was being sapped from her body. She was completely numb. Her muscles ached, screaming at her for even thinking of moving. She knew if she stayed put, she'd die, she had to keep moving to keep her blood flowing, but she couldn't move. She must have had frostbite by this point. She was really going to die – and it was still getting colder. Her skin had faded to the sickly deathly grayish white color; her blue veins were not quite visible anymore. It was the end. She would die alone in her inner world freezing to death._

_If the temperature had seemed cold before, it was nothing compared to this… it was plummeting, it had to be getting close to absolute zero. Frost sparkled on her skin and clung to her clothes. She could see her breath, simple steam in the frozen wasteland. Her breath caught in her throat, it hurt to breath. She could see a pale light through her closed eyelids. _

_'So this is the end,' she though… the light slowly grew brighter. She prepared for death's warm embrace…_

That was when…she woke up.

The room was dimly lit with the lights on low. She was slightly chilled, but she wasn't cold. The room was actually a pleasant temperature. She heard a soft click to her left. She didn't bother to look and she closed her eyes again, still exhausted, considering her nightmare hadn't exactly made her feel better. She heard the door close softly and the sound of footsteps padding gently over to her bed. _'Unohana-taicho must be back,'_ she thought; she opened her eyes expecting to see the kind hearted captain…it was a rude awakening. Standing by her bed was Sode no Shirayuki.

She looked as beautiful as always…the same white hair, and beautiful figure…something was different. Her eyes. Shirayuki stared straight at Rukia and she could see what was different. The beautiful crystal blue eyes…had crimson rings around the pupils.

Shirayuki held her hand above Rukia's face, ice crystals that were sharp as daggers appeared in her hand. Her eyes were staring at Rukia, but her mind seemed elsewhere, like she was on a totally different planet.

"Kuchiki…Rukia…" she whispered as she released the icy weapons.

Rukia's eyes widen, and she screamed…

Then there was nothing.

* * *

Momo's eyes widened as the fireball blazed towards her. She hadn't drawn her sword, she was too amazed that Tobiume had actually tried, and was doing a fairly good job, to kill her. Moving to the roof of another building, "TOBIUME!" she yelled, "PLEASE!! STOP!!"

Tobiume giggled and landed elegantly in front of the burnet shinigami, the bells chiming with her the movement. "Now…why would I listen to you?" she continued giggling like a school girl. "I'm having so much fun!"

"But…we're friends…we-"

"Shut up." Tobiume napped suddenly becoming serious.

Momo said nothing as Tobiume once again grabbed the ribbons. "I told you before, I want to have fun but I can see that in order to do so, I must kill you."

Before Momo could reply, the cute girl sent another blazing fire ball at her. It streaked through the night sky like a comet. Momo's eyes widened as she braced herself for her next move…

* * *

Before he could move, a bright light erupted from the room. Above his head he heard the roof crackling. Quick as lightening, he shifted to his right and a support beam from the ceiling landed where he had been standing.

Toushiro blinked and then shunpoed to the door. The room no longer had the hospital look. From the tall beam of light, snow erupted like lava from a volcano. Ice slowly covered the floor and began to spread out. Toushiro jumped back out of the ice's reach. Division Four shinigami began to appear, the noise getting their attention.

"Stay back" Toushiro said making them all jump. He wasn't mad, but the order had been barked out in a tone that left no room for arguments. He meant what he said. They needed to stay back. The situation was bad, he just didn't know how bad; and he hated the feeling of being clueless.

Unohana appeared. "Oh…dear…" she managed to whisper out. It was bad enough that Kuchiki-taicho was missing… now his little sister as well? Guilt clawed at Unohana's throat. The Kuchiki heiress had been under her care… and had disappeared. She snapped out of her thoughts when another support beam fell. She looked at her squad, all anxious and waiting on her orders. "Gather everyone in this building and evacuate them immediately. Make sure that nobody is left behind."

"Right" they replied as the dashed off to obey their orders. Hitsugaya even helped them, offering any assistance he could. It went smoothly at first…until…_CRACK! _Toushiro heard a loud snap.

Icy spears pierced through walls, strangled screams echoed through the vacant halls, with a loud crack, louder than echoing thunder, the lights went out, but this was only the beginning. In the now dark, pitch-black rooms, patients and aids alike were pierced by the falling beams, splintering as they fell, scattering debris everywhere. Icy spears piercing wall further scattered the debris and speared the shinigami like shish kabobs.

Somehow, through all this, the survivors managed to escape, though it had been a long process, they got the building empty of the survivors. Some were wounded; some were on death's door step, some barley standing, bleeding a river. The pillar of light had rose up high into the clouds…just like the first dance, Tsukishiro. Snow scattering form it, it whipped up whirlwinds and mini tornadoes filled with raging and angry snow, Antarctic winds ripped though the Seireitei. The temperature dropped, significantly. It was chaotic.

Yet, despite this, a strange sense of melancholy hung in the air, so thick it could be cut with a knife. While it was frightening, it was insanely beautiful. Even though it was the dead of night, and there were no lights, the ice was like diamonds, sparkling in random hues and prisms. Hitsugaya remembered the fires that had started in the Seireitei. The reflection of the fire's light on the ice was enough to remind them all of the crisis at hand.

As the icy tower of light intensified, it made the Seireitei glow with its' unnatural presence. Toushiro squinted as he looked closely to the tower… her could just barely make it out… but there was _something_ inside it. Before he could do anything else, another snapping and tearing noise drew his attention back to the building he had just finished evacuating. There was a bright flash that seemed almost like lightening, and the wood that held the buildings made unnatural moaning and popping noises, resembling the sound of bones being broken, support beams snapped, scattering splinters everywhere in all directions… and to everyone's horror…the building collapsed in on itself, and there grounds were covered in snow.

* * *

As she prepared to move, Momo slipped and lost her footing. A thin layer of ice had appeared over the roof of the building…Momo slid off the building and landed on the ground below. Her ankle giving a loud and merciless crack upon impact with the ground. She was stuck and she knew it. The swirling ball of fire inched closer and closer to her, hurtling at a steady pace. She would die at the hand of her zanpakutou. She closed her eyes figuring that if she was going to die anyway, she might as well not know when it happened.

_Whoosh._

A frigid wind carrying snow flurries ripped through, knocking Momo over on her left side from the force. The fireball was caught in the Antarctic current and extinguished mid-flight, just several inched from Momo.

Tobiume took a few steps forward. "Aw… and I was having so much fun." She whined, the bells chiming with the movement. She stared at her wielder for a few brief seconds and shrugged. "Oh well, I guess I can't help what I can't help." She said as she disappeared, seeming to lose interest in the fight. Momo was left lying on the ground with the echoes of the chiming bells ringing in her ears.

Clouds began to form, and snow began to fall. Momo drew her knees to her chest. She was shivering and her ankle throbbed. Tears rolled down her cheeks… she was so cold and tired…so, so tired…and then her body was completely numb. Not another sound was made.

* * *

"Is it too late, will she wake up?" a worried voice asked. It was so familiar…

_Who does it sound like? How do I know it?_

"Hitsugaya-taicho, please calm yourself. She should come around soon. Kurosaki Ichigo brought her to us in time." The female's voice answered.

"Eh, Toushiro, if she survived Aizen's attack, then she'll survive anything." Another guy said.

"Refer to me as 'Hitsugaya-taicho' not 'Toushiro,' Kurosaki." The very familiar voice snapped back.

_That voice…its so familiar…Toushiro…Shiro…Shiro-chan! It's Lil'Shiro!_

"I'm going to check on my other patients. If you need me I'll be right down the hall." The female said, leaving the room.

"You're such a prick, Toushiro."

"It's Hitsugaya-taicho."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever…so…Toushiro, what were you going to say about Rukia?"

"Its, **Hitsugaya-taicho**." He responded through gritted teeth.

"Fine, _Hitsugaya-taicho,_ where is Rukia?"

_His voice is familiar, yet I can't place it. I've heard it before… when was it?_

"I don't know where she is. There was a strange phenomenon coming from her room in the Division Four barracks and when I got there, she was gone."

"…She's gone… where?"

"If I knew the answer to that, Kurosaki Ichigo, I'd tell you. But obviously, If I'm **wondering** what happened, it stands to reason that I don't **know.**"

_Kurosaki Ichigo… where have I heard that name?_

"What happened to her?" the voice, belonging to Ichigo shook.

_So much pain…I wish I could help him…_

"What part of 'I don't know' do you not understand? I told you what happened. I was in the halls of Division Four. Everything began to ice over. I heard her scream, and there was a bright flash of light. When I got there, she was gone. Shortly after that, the building collapsed. I know this is a hard thing for you to accept, but you have to consider the possibility that she may be dead."

"**NO!**" Ichigo yelled, throwing something, quite possibly a chair against a wall. "Rukia **can't** be dead. I can _feel _it."

"I was just stating a fact. You need to calm down before Unohana comes back in here."

"If she's dead. It's **your** fault…and mark my words, Hitsugaya Toushiro…"

She opened her eyes, while she couldn't see the white haired captain, she could see the substitute shinigami. His eyes had change from hazel to yellow, and his voice had the same throaty growl of a hallow. The five words that slithered off his lips sent chills running up and down the girl in the bed's spine.

_"I will **never** forgive you."_

The smaller man said nothing. What could he have done? He had said almost the same thing to Ichimaru Gin about Momo. While Ichigo didn't verbally say it, the threat hung silently in the air.

_Not only will I not forgive you…I will kill you._

Hitsugaya blinked his acknowledgement to Ichigo's words and turned his attention to his friend, who lay in the bed. "Good to see you've finally woke up, Bed-wetter." There was a soft teasing tone to his voice that was gentle for his friend, but the hate in his eyes as he gazed at Ichigo left no room for commentary on the matter of Kuchiki Rukia.

"Shiro-chan? Where are you?" she asked glancing around looking for him.

He moved into her line of vision, a soft twinkle in his eyes, and his voice softened, "It's Hitsugaya-taicho," he reprimanded gently.

It was like seeing a child in a candy store on Christmas morning. Hitsugaya was relieved; his childhood companion was going to be alright.

Ichigo had been standing by the door, his hand fixing to open it.

"Kurosaki-san! Wait!" Momo blurted out.

Ichigo paused. "Yeah?"

"Thank you for bringing me here; if you hadn't found me, I'd have frozen to death out there…"

Ichigo nodded "Don't mention it," and he left.

Hitsugaya picked up the chair that Ichigo had thrown and pulled it up beside Momo's bed. "Division Six has been turned into a temporary medical base until we find Kuchiki-taicho and build a new building for Division Four."

Momo nodded then she glanced at the door. "Shiro-chan… he's not…"

"Kurosaki won't hurt me."

"How do you know? What if he-"

"He's confused, worried, hurt, and angry. He didn't mean what he said, after he calms down; he'll come around and apologize."

"Shiro-chan, I'm still worried."

"Don't be, just focus on resting."

"But-"

"Not buts… and one more thing, Momo."

"Hm?"

"It's Hitsugaya-taicho."

"Is it all true? Is she really gone?"

Toushiro held Momo's hand. "There is no way to know for sure; but let's talk about something that won't make you depressed."

Momo sighed and stayed silent for a while, then turned and gazed out the window. "It's snowing." She whispered.

"Yes, it is" he answered quietly, watching her doze off. He waited a moment for her to go into a deep sleep and rose up from his seat, tucking the blanket around her, he left the room silently.

* * *

"It's not even autumn yet…and we're having a blizzard." Komamura commented.

Unohana nodded quietly in agreement.

"I'm going to add this to my list of phenomenon to research." Mayuri announced. "I need everyone to tell me everything about the collapse of the building and maybe I can determine exactly what is going on." He produced a note pad and a pen.

Unohana nodded. "I'm sure all the captains know about Kurotsuchi-taicho's research plans about testing each of us over the matter of our zanpakutous leaving us." She looked around at the other captains present… Soifon, Kenpachi, Hitsugaya, Kyourakuand Ukitake, they all nodded. She paused for a moment before she continued. "The last thing I did before I left my division was check on Kuchiki Rukia. She was sleeping when I left her, then I went to Division Twelve, when I got back, the room Kuchiki-chan had been in was glowing and the building was being attacked by spears of ice. Hitsugaya-taicho, my squad, and I evacuated the remains of the almost destroyed building and it collapsed as soon as we got outside. That is everything I can report."

Mayuri nodded, as he jotted it down. "I can vouch for your presence in my barracks, so no lies there…Hitsugaya-taicho, why were you in Division Four at the time?"

Before Toushiro opened his mouth, Ukitake spoke. "Where is Rukia?"

Hitsugaya suddenly felt as if he were being stabbed in the stomach… like he'd be sick. _'This is the girl's captain…of course he's going to want to know what happened to her.'_

Unohana and Hitsugaya exchanged nervous glances. Hitsugaya took a breath and took that moment to choose his words carefully. "Ukitake-taicho, there is no easy way to tell you this, but…" he paused trying to find a way to put it delicately as he explained seeing the light coming from the building and how he rushed in to help. "…and when I got to her room, she wasn't there," he concluded.

"My God… no…" Ukitake choked out. Unohana shook her head and placed a hand on the sick man's shoulder.

"You know, Jushiro, you've said so yourself that she's a stubborn little thing, correct?" Shunsui said, taking a seat beside his friend. Ukitake nodded weakly in response. "She is," he whispered.

Shunsui smiled "Maybe she just pretended to be asleep and escaped as soon as Unohana left." He offered lamely. "She may be close by in a warm building sound asleep, safe and sound." He couldn't see to see his friend broken like that. Losing one of the people he cared about most, losing Shiba Kaien, was bad enough; Ukitake couldn't lose the other one too. Ukitake didn't have children, but the way he would dote on Rukia when he and Shunsui would train sometimes Shunsui would find himself thinking that Rukia was Ukitake's daughter or something of the sort.

Shunsui realized that it may be false hope that he was giving his friend, but if it gave the sickly man something to cling to and to live for, then who cares what other people think of him? Who cares if the others look down on him? Who cares about what they think? If it gave them all a slight glimmer of hope that things would get better, then so be it. KyourakuShunsui did not care if he became the crazy-drunken-optimist of the group if it meant that there was still hope.

Unohana studied Kyouraku thoughtfully; who could say for sure, maybe he was right. Unohana thought about the times after the girl had been adopted… how Rukia would try to hide from the medics…how she hated hospitals. It was a possibility, but highly unlikely, considering that Unohana herself had watched Rukia fall asleep. "It's true that we don't have a body or evidence to prove she's dead, but…" she trailed off.

Hitsugaya finished the sentence, "It was Kuchiki-san's scream that I heard, seconds before the chaos started."

Ukitake nodded but said nothing. He was by no means an idiot. He knew they were just trying not to give him more to think about. He knew they didn't want him to suffer more than he had to. He knew. But it didn't make it easier. To see young shinigami with so much potential, with their whole lives ahead of them…to die before he did…he, the sickly captain of Division Thirteen to outlive his young guardsmen…broke his heart. Even if he never showed it, he hated death.

"She may have been taken," a new voice ventured. His gruff voice rang out over the silence. The owner of the voice surprised the captains the most.

"What do you mean, Zaraki-taicho?" Unohana asked.

The battle scarred man sighed. "Think about it" he sounded as if he were explaining it simply to small children. "The kid said he heard a scream and when he got to the room, she was gone, right?"

Many heads nodded with this; Hitsugaya had indeed reported that. Zaraki gave them a few brief seconds to ponder his words before he continued. "It's a possibility after all, think about what has been going on. Kuchiki-taicho and Yamamoto-soutaicho have disappeared. Who's to say that the perpetrator who has taken them hasn't claimed her as their next victim?"

"Yeah," Soifon replied dryly. "You know its chaos when Zaraki is the voice of reason."

She did have a point. Zaraki and Kurotsuchi were the maddest of all the captains. Mayuri because of his…science projects and Zaraki…was in a class of his own.

Never the less, Zaraki glared that the ninja-like captain, and she glared back. "I'm stating a fact, Zaraki. You are usually the one to charge in head first without thinking. Since when are you sensible?"

Zaraki said nothing in response, but he did continue to glare at…everything in general.

The scratching of the pen on the paper stopped abruptly. "So, say by chance she had been taken, where would she be?" Mayuri asked nobody in particular.

Toushiro had said nothing, being deep in though. The situation bugged him. Why couldn't he shake the feeling that he was missing something? He gazed out the window, the pillar had iced over but it was still glowing…something about the light…

Several theories were offered. 'She was in Hueco Mundo' or 'She had been taken wherever her brother was.'

The meeting hall was ringing with the sound of everyone talking, offering up theories, arguing on who's theory was best, who's was incorrect. The chatter ended when Hitsugaya spoke.

"Can we view the security tape?" he asked suddenly; all eyes were on him now.

"Do you have a theory to offer?" Mayuri asked.

"Actually, yes and no…" he trailed off, thinking about what he had seen in the light.

_The light was glowing bright. But… it wasn't really 'shining light' it was more like the reflection of sun on freshly fallen snow. What had been inside of it? Snow fields… a forest… mountains… what was it?_

"Give me an hour and I'll have the tapes ready." Mayuri said.

"Right then," Toushiro answered.

The meeting came to a conclusion and the captains went their separate ways to attempt to regain some order in the Seireitei.

* * *

Hitsugaya had an hour to kill. He had long since given up with the paperwork, especially since the first night… the night Muramasa appeared. He knew after it was all over, if it did end, the work would be piled up to the ceiling.

He needed to find Matsumoto and his squad. As he moved towords his division, an icy blast almost blew him over. As surprise second one succeeded. He landed in a snow bank. He groaned, annoyed and stood back up shaking snow off of himself… and he heard it then.

_So cold…can't…feel anything thing…can't breathe…being crushed…_

He looked around. A shinigami was close by and hurt. He quickly began diving into snow banks searching for the owner of the voice. She was obviously female… and she was in pain. He gazed around again. Nobody was within speaking range of him…yet the voice was like a whisper.

It must have been his mind playing tricks on him in the not-so-dark night. It was lonely in the snow covered Seireitei, and cold, that alone was enough to cause a mirage. He shook his head and began to walk again.

_So…cold…I won't make it…_

"Where are you?" He asked out loud, looking around again. As he had before he came up with nothing. He received no hint of being close. His patience was slowly eroding away. He began to muter curses under his breath, and began to walk again. He knew the voice; he had heard it before…who's was it? _'Where are you?'_ he thought, still looking around.

_I'm…_

The other words were lost. The ground began shaking; the blizzard winds intensified, the pillar was changing shape. It expanded and contracted. More waves of ice covered the Seireitei. The light faded a bit and he could see inside it just a bit more clearly… it confirmed what he had thought he had glimpsed the first time. Just as disaster started, it stopped. The pillar was taller and thinner and the light had dimmed ever-so-slightly. The Seireitei was left in a calm, silent state… the calm before the storm.

_'Who are you?'_ he asked again.

A gentle breeze carried his answer. The voice whispered the answer in his ears. He gave one final glance at the tower and thought about the voice and the name that went with it…he had a feeling. He knew where the owner of the voice was…he knew she was in pain. All he needed to do was to confirm his suspicions. He needed to move fast.

The clock was ticking.

_T.B.C_

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**Ok… so this chapter was weird… I was in math class and… didn't pay one bit of attention… so today when I took the test… (let's just say I know I failed it without looking at the graded paper)**

**Anyway… yeah… I'm gonna get started on the next chapter… and maybe it won't be so weird… I'm sorry… this chapter sucks… OTL**


	3. Planning

**I'm sorry last chapter was…sort of weird. *sighs* and this chapter isn't much more normal… anyway… I guess… try to bear with me… **

**I'm also sorry it took so long to update… I've just had some personal problems that needed to be taken care of since… Thanksgiving… But now that the problems are out of the way, hopefully, I can get Chapter Four to you lovely people soon. **

**For you, my readers, are the reason I write. Your support means the world to me.**

***sighs* Well – I finally found my flashdrive. Maybe I need to put a beeper on it. XD**

**Please excuse all the typos and crap in this chapter… I no longer have a beta reader… so…. Yeah. Until I get a new one…. OTL Bear with me. **

**On a brighter note… A fall themed chapter to kick off the fall? I guess it was good timing after all. **

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* * *

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It was raining like something nobody else had ever seen in Karakura Town. A chilling breeze ripped through the streets, tree limbs swayed to and fro and the leaves, which were changing colors for the fall, shivered. The park was decorated with rich rusty reds, sunset oranges, crisp golden yellows, and chocolate browns. On a bright sunny day, the park in the fall was a perfect place for an afternoon walk, but not in this weather.

The raindrops tapped against the closed window. Even with the heater on, there was still a slight chill to the room. Orihime sighed and wrapped up with her blanked and padded barefoot across the room to turn the heater up. _'I wonder where Ichigo went…' _she thought as she gazed at her brother's picture. Her mind began to wonder… especially on… Ichigo and Rukia.

_They sat together in class. They were together at lunch. Even when they went off to fight hollows, they were always together. They watched each other's backs._

_When she got bored in class and started drawing, Ichigo would comment about how her drawings suck. She would punch his stomach. A few minutes would pass and they'd laugh about it._

_Ichigo would smile for her. Why was that? What did Rukia have that she, Orihime didn't? When Ichigo went into depression… it was Rukia that brought him back. She had done nothing. Why was that?_

_Why hadn't she thought about knocking Ichigo around like Rukia had done? Why hadn't she thought about some of the things that Rukia could do that would get a reaction from Ichigo?_

_Why was it that the only person Ichigo seemed able to see was Rukia? Why was it all about Rukia?_

_During the execution, Ichigo's main focus was on Rukia. He just had to save Rukia. He faced many opponents just to save her; he put himself in danger to save her. Yet it seemed as if everyone who had helped did nothing as Ichigo had saved her._

_Even when she was captured by Aizen… Rukia was there…fighting to protect her…to bring her back. But the minute Rukia's spirit energy disappeared, she had sensed Ichigo rushing to her aid… and he had gotten seemingly killed by Ulquiorra. When Ichigo awoke… he was still concerned about Rukia. It was 'Thank you, Orihime… now where is Rukia?'_

_Rukia risked her life to bring Orihime back home, but even then, Ichigo's main concern was still for Rukia. When they succeeded in saving Orihime… it was still about Rukia._

_Rukia… pretty, kind, brave, and strong._

'_She's my best friend! Why am I thinking this?'_

The sudden ringing of the phone jerked her back to reality. She had no idea how long she had been sitting there, but her feet were tingling and numb causing her to stumble as she made her way to the phone.

"Hello?" she answered. The voice on the other end surprised her.

"Orihime, this is Uryu."

"Oh? Hi Uryu! What's up?" she asked, thrilled to hear from one of her friends on such a wet and depressing day.

"Try to stay in as best you can tonight and be sure to keep the heat on." He said as if talking to a five year old, which of course, Orihime didn't catch. After all, she had gotten used to hearing Uryu speak in that manner. He tended to treat everyone as if they were incompetent.

"Sure…but why?" she asked. She hadn't expected something trivial like this. Why would Uryu be calling her about this?

"It never gets this cold this early, and we never get this much rain this early. I just want you to promise me that you will be careful. I have a feeling it may get colder later, and from the looks of the skies, there's more rain on the way."

Orihime pictured him adjusting his glasses the way he always did when he was explaining something to Ichigo or anyone in general. How his eyes sparkle when he got to share something with the rest of the group that he had more knowledge of.

"Oh, ok." She said in a cheerful voice. "Thank you for calling to check on me, Uryu, it means a lot."

"It's no big deal. Later." He said as Orihime heard the click signaling that Uryu had hung up the phone.

Orihime sighed as she hung up. She looked again at the picture of her dearly beloved brother. "Well, Sora that was nice of Uryu wasn't it?" she told the picture as she felt her mood lifting. Her smile got bigger all of the sudden as she bounced to the kitchen. "Its supper time!" she cheered as she began rummaging through her refrigerator.

Unsuccessful at finding anything that she could 'cook' she began going through the pantry. She began to grow slightly frustrated…where had all the food she had bought almost a week ago disappear to?

As she stared into the pantry…she grew lost to her thoughts.

_Bzzzt._

The buzzing of the door bell made her jump. Any thought that had been in her mind, that had been there was gone. She quickly ran to the door and opened it. "Uryu?" she asked, shocked. What was he doing at her apartment?

"Come in!" she said as she more or less drug him in. "It's freezing outside."

Uryu nodded. "You aren't exaggerating." He pulled off his coat and shook snowflakes off of it. "It started snowing about twenty minutes ago." He said, while adjusting his glasses.

'_It wasn't snowing when I sat down… how long was I out?'_ She thought bitterly as she smiled sweetly at him "So what brings you here?" she asked while trying to find something warm to drink for him, but gave up after finding a bunch of gravy mixes and canned vegetables. "I would offer you hot chocolate but it seems like I'm out." She said, slightly embarrassed.

"Not to worry, I've brought you something to eat." Uryu said, and Orhime thought she saw a soft pink tinge to his cheeks, but… after thinking about, she decided it was a trick of the light.

"You came all this way for me?" she asked, her voice filled with surprise.

"It's no big deal" he brushed it off with a shrug. "I was on my way home and I thought I would stop by."

"Then the food is?"

"Take out."

She smiled "Then why don't you just stay and have dinner with me? It's the least I can do since you did so much for me," she offered and began to make room for him at the table.

Uryu nodded and decided to join her. "Thank you, Orihime."

"It's no problem!" she said as she walked back to the kitchen from the dining room to get something them to drink. It seemed as if they would be drinking tap water.

Orihime gathered two cups in her hands and turned the knob on the faucet. She snapped to attention upon hearing a strange noise outside the window. She paused to listen. She heard it again. It sounded as if fabric or something were being ripped apart. She gazed out the window and looked up at the sky…the sky… there was a strange crack in the sky. Was a Menos coming? "Uryu!" she yelled. As the Quincy entered the room, light erupted from the cracks. No, it couldn't have been a _wasn't _a Menos. What was it?

The ground began to shake beneath their feet. A pillar of light rose up from the ground and merged with the light that poured from the sky. "What's going on?" she yelled over the sound of windows shattering, things falling off the walls. A building across the street collapsed.

A white tower that seemed as if it were made of glass began to appear. It came up from the ground and ribbons of snow danced out of orbit from it; they spiraled off in random directions to the ground. The rain that had been falling turned to ice daggers that fell upon the earth. It fell in a slanted direction and the temperature plummeted.

Orihime was at a loss; it was scary yet amazingly beautiful at the same time. She knew that she should have been afraid because she could die, but… she couldn't be afraid… the snow dancing to the ground was mesmerizing it produced a rainbow spectrum of colors from the light that shown on it. It was so beautiful. Reality set in as she felt a hand grab her wrist and she felt herself being pulled backwards. "Watch out Orihime!" Uryu yelled as a car door slammed through the window.

"Let's go." He said putting his coat on and helping her into her own purple jacket that was hanging on the rack.

"Where?"

"Urahara's. There may be a connection with this and Hueco Mundo. Aizen could be behind this." He said, almost dragging her out the front door.

She said nothing; only running hand and hand with Uryu. Buildings made moaning and snapping sounds as the couple ran past them. They seemed to twist and bend. It looked like a tornado made of snow was ripping though the streets of Karakura.

Regular humans were oblivious to the glassy tower as they ran to their homes and nearby buildings for shelter from the blizzard.

They kept running and running. Frost appeared on the windows of the buildings they passed. In a matter of minutes, the ground was covered in snow. Karakura was having a blizzard.

Uryu and Orihime ran and ran. Their vision was blurred from the whipping snow filled winds; puddles of water froze solid into ice. Cars slid across the road. Pedestrians on the sidewalk skated around in a very ungraceful fashion, limbs flailing in random directions. Several people around them landed on the ground, but still, they pushed forward into the freezing temperatures, the icy realm that enveloped Karakura.

"Just around the corner now" Uryu told Orihime, his hand still in hers. She gave him a brief nod in reply and continued. They had had to slow down to avoid slipping and falling on the ice. They were almost there.

* * *

_The door opened. A slim silvery figure slipped into the room and the door closed silently behind her. A trail of ice fell behind her where she put her feet leaving tiny footprints behind. The raven haired girl in the bed did not stir. Frost appeared on the windows. The patient opened her eyes and screamed._

_Shirayuki gathered ice particles in her hand and held her hand above Rukia head, aiming at her face. "Kuchiki… Rukia…" she whispered. _

_Ice covered Rukia's face and the girl went limp. Shirayuki effortlessly picked Rukia up as a small glimmer of light appeared. With one finger, she made a beam of ice shoot into it and it opened. Once it reached the size to her satisfaction, she slipped in. The light shined brightly, too bright for the camera to capture anything else, the screen turned to white. A sharp rumbling could be heard, and when the camera could focus again, the room had changed; it was covered in ice and snow. A sharp noise picked up by the microphone moaned through the speakers. The room began to shake. With a loud crack splinters and slivers of wood danced before the camera lens. A support beam toppled over and landed on the bed. The screen shook more and the floor was suddenly rushing forward. The screen went black and the noise faded as the camera had died._

The tape itself was of poor quality. It was a bit blurry around the edges. Sode no Shirayuki had seemed almost ghost-like. Just off to the bottom right of the screen there was a fuzzy black spot that seemed to be something else but nobody could tell for sure. The video file had gotten damaged in the collapse of the building and Mayuri had spent and additional twenty minutes trying to get it to work. Needless to say, when the other captains had gotten there, Mayuri had been on the verge of breaking the main computer in his frustration. His lieutenant, Nemu stood quietly in the corner; it was almost as if she wasn't there. Her right eye had been hidden by her hair, but if one looked closely enough, they could see the beginnings of a bruise appearing around the swollen eye.

"So… it looks like Sode no Shirayuki took the girl and when she opened the portal all of this started." Kamamura stated.

The captains nodded. Toushiro's eyes remained on the screen. "Can you play it once more in slow motion?" he asked. Something about the light bothered him. Mayuri gave the younger captain a strange look but replayed the tape as the white-haired man asked. Toushrio stared at the screen. "Pause it" he said suddenly and then he pointed to the black speck. "Look. Watch this spot right here." He said as the tape resumed. Shirayuki knocked Rukia out. The black spot didn't move. The portal opened and entered the black spot disappeared and was gone. Right as the small portal opened before the tower appeared; a black shadow flickered across the light and vanished. Then, the tower appeared.

Keys on the keyboard clicked loudly in the silent room. Mayuri zoomed in and replayed it slower. It was no good. The film had been too damaged. "This bothers me." Toushiro voiced his thoughts.

"What could it be?" The usually drunk Eighth Division captain asked, amazingly somber for once.

The captains fell into silence, still absorbing the information. A few cast sympathetic glances at the Thirteenth Division captain, who remained motionless.

Ukitake said nothing. The tape had confirmed his fears. Rukia was gone too. There was nothing that could be done… no. There was nothing that he could do… but something can be done. "Send someone to get her back." Ukitake's soft voice rang loudly in the silence.

"How do you propose we do that?" Soifon snapped. "All of us are tired, we're worried, and we are all risking our necks to restore order. We don't have the time or the help to play super hero and rescue your unseated officer. There is no telling how many shinagami lay dead on the streets. You have the rest of your squad to think of and all you can even think about is just that one girl? She's just one person. There's a chance that she might not even be alive anymore. What difference does it make?"

"If that's the way you feel, then I'll go alone." Jushiro replied.

"Please don't," Unohana said as she put a comforting arm on her patient's shoulder. "Perhaps there's a compromise that we can make."

"Like what?" Kamamura responded, obviously siding with Soifon.

Stress can do wonders to a person. Even the kindest of people can snap unexpectedly. Lack of sleep, personal concerns, and shock were definitely taking its toll on the captains as they began to take their negative feelings out on one another.

Turquoise eyes flashed to a sword about to be drawn. "I'LL GO." One voice rang out above the others. "Zaraki, put the sword up while you're at it." The young man's voice commanded.

The lab grew silent once more; Toushiro felt all their eyes on him, listening to what he had to say.

"Soifon, you brought up a great point. It's true that we don't know the gravity of the situation. We need all the people we can spare. But, to just heartlessly sacrifice someone isn't the way to go." Toushiro's eyes shown wisdom beyond his years.

"Ukitake, in your condition, you wouldn't last a minute in that frozen wasteland; besides, you are needed here. I'll go in your place. I was there when Kuchiki Rukia was taken and I couldn't do anything then, so I will at least try to bring her back."

"_Rukia, don't" Ukitake said, stopping the young girl from charging recklessly into a fight between Kien and the hollow._

"_WHY? IF WE DON'T HELP HIM, HE'LL DIE!"_

"_In this world, there are battles to defend your life, and battles to defend your honor. Right now, Kien is fighting to defend his honor. Sure, if you help him, he'll probably survive… but what about his honor? What happens to it?"_

_Rukia sighed. "I see…" she said, putting down her sword._

Ukitake remained silent, his hands shaking. "You want… to defend your honor."

Toushiro gave a slight nod in reply.

The other captains in the room remained silent. What else was there to say? The young captain had prevented an all-out fight, and… was willing to sacrifice himself.

"It looks as if the portal is still open." Mayuri concluded, breaking the silence. "But we don't know how long it will stay open."

Before the young captain could speak, the mad scientist continued. "However, I'm sure that once you get in, there has to be a way out. I suggest taking a small patrol along with you just incase though. Though chances are, once you're in, you're stuck."

"I already know who I plan to take." Toushiro answered, earning looks ranging from intrigued to 'are you crazy?'

Not another word was said for the remainder of the captain's time in the lab.

* * *

The door was flung open and the couple skidded to a halt as they entered the room.

"Ah, Orihime, Uryu, if I'd known you were coming to visit, I'd had a cup of cocoa ready for you." Urahara greeted as he sat at his table.

"There's something going on with -

"The weather, I know," Urahara replied, "there's no word from the Soul Society either. This is strange."

"Is there's something going on?" Uryu asked

"Possibly," Urahara said before motioning for them to sit down.

"Is this what you were looking for?" A familiar voice said. Orihime and Uryu turned and saw a familiar figure - Yourichi stepped out and into view.

With a loud crack that seemed to vibrate the earth interruped the meeting briefly. A bright white flash scattered random dark shadows on the wall, each resembling a humanoid being, but it was gone in a second - they couldn't tell for sure, but there seemed to be another presence in the room. They had to work quickly.

* * *

'_We need to leave immediately.'_ Hitsugaya thought as he walked through the barracks of the temporary medical base. He hardly recognized the surroundings. Before he could open the door to his office, a flash of orange caught his attention.

"Kurosaki."

"There you are, Toushiro, look, about earlier…"

"First, it's 'Hitsugaya-taicho' to you. Second, don't worry about it. Third, I need you to come with me." Turquoise met haze.

"Where?"

Toushiro sighed and gave the carrot top a brief summary, hoping the human would catch on quicker than he normally did. He was in no mood to deal with idiots.

"Of course, anything to protect Rukia." Ichigo replied.

Inwardly, the young captain gave a sigh of relief. He wouldn't have to repeat himself to the human after all. Toushiro nodded. _'He really cares for her.' _Toushiro thought as he turned to face she substitute shinigami.

"You have fifteen minutes to gather everything you need." He ordered. "We'll meet at the light tower's base."

Before Ichigo could reply, Toushiro promptly opened the door and walked in, the door closing behind him. Toushiro sighed as he entered his friend's room. "Momo, it's me, I'm back." He said, lightly shutting the door behind him.

Hinamori was due to be released at the end of the day and since he wouldn't be there… he shook his head; he refused to upset the girl like that.

Momo was laying awake flipping through a magazine from the world of the living that looked similar to the ones his lieutenant had been looking at during his brief stay in Karakura. The burnet looked up "Shiro-chan!" she exclaimed, exciment sparkled in her eyes.

He sighed. Why couldn't anyone ever get it right? "It's Hitsugaya-taicho." He said flatly, slightly amused when his friend gave him a small pout. "Anyway, I wanted to say goodbye to you before I left."

"Where are you going, Shiro-chan?"

He sighed. "During the captains meeting, I volunteered to lead a patrol to see if we can find Kuchiki Rukia and bring her back."

"WHAT?" she screamed.

Toushiro inwardly cringed. Things were not going well. "Momo, I'm taking others with me, please calm down."

"Who?"

"Ikaku and Yumichiki from Division Eleven, Abari-fukutaicho, Matsumoto… and…" hesitated.

"And?" she asked, curiosity flickered in her eyes. Toushiro almost didn't want to tell her. She hadn't been the same since… the incident. Aizen's departure had left her self-esteem shattered, and she had gotten moody. The littlest of things would fluster her. He sighed, _'Better get this over with,' _he thought. "and Kurosaki Ichigo."

She grew silent and didn't move for a long time. Toushrio felt a small sliver of hope. Maybe she would be fine. A second glance found tears in her eyes.

'_Uh-oh'_

"Why do you have to go? Why does it have to be you? How do you even know if you will come back? Why are you leaving me again?" she screamed out.

"Momo—"

"Why do you have to try so hard? What are you trying to prove?" her voce shot up an octave.

"Momo."

"WHY –"

He put his hands on her shoulders, "Momo. Listen to me." His words came louder and colder than he had intended. He mentally kicked himself for yelling at her.

"Shiro-chan…" she choked through her tears.

The young man sighed and lowered his voice. "Momo, you know I'll be back."

"Why are you trying so hard to save a girl you don't even talk to? Why does her life matter to you so much? She isn't even seated."

"I respect Ukitake-taicho, and 'the girl' as you called her, is very important to him. How could I just say no? If she dies, it's my fault."

"How is it your fault? It's not like you commanded Muramasa to release all of the zanpakutou." She declared defiantly. Had she been anyone else, she'd have been in serious trouble.

"Momo," his voice pleaded her to understand. "I was the closest one to Kuchiki-san's room. I didn't move to her room when I had the chance. I **hesitated.**"

"It's not your fault." She said, placing a hand on his arm.

"I was right there where I could help her and I didn't do anything."

"Shiro-chan, why are you so adamant about this?"

"Because…"

"Because?" her brown eyes met his turquoise jewels.

"I won't forgive myself for allowing a comrade to get hurt. My split second of hesitation allowed her to be taken."

"You're doing it for your pride? Shiro-chan, that's stupid!"

"No, I'm doing it for my conscience." He said with a glare, why couldn't she understand it? If he hadn't hesitated, then Kuchiki Rukia wouldn't have been abducted.

"Shiro-chan I—" she cut off, intimidated by the ice in his stare. After her brief pause, she gave her long time friend a bitter smile and glared back. The ice in her tone startled Toushiro to the point he lost his composure. "If you go, I won't forgive you."

"M-M-Momo!" he gasped. She girl he knew would have never said that. His voice shook with worry. "You know you don't mean that."

"I'll kill myself," she relied stubbornly.

"Momo please!" he was slowly reaching his wits end.

"Aizen-taicho was right… nobody can be trusted."

Toushiro remained silent for quite a while. Seconds turned to minutes. Finally, it was Hinamori that broke the silence. "Let me go with you."

"Momo, I can't. We leave in an hour and you won't be release for another three." He answered smoothly, silently sending thanks to Unohana for her decision.

"Let me go with you." She repeated once again, a bit louder.

"It's too dangerous." He relied, growing worried about the mental stability of his friend. Just what else would she try?

Another awkward silence.

"I'll come back," his soft voice broke the silence. His eyes sparkled with a tenderness he had only ever shown to her.

"Don't bother," she said with a glare. "You've betrayed me too."

"Momo…" The proud captain had nothing to say. Her answer pierced his heart. He felt as if she had ran him through with Hyorinmaru,

"If you're going to leave, then get going." She spat bitterly.

Toushiro sighed and having nothing else to say, he did as his friend requested. He turned and left the room.

Momo listened at the footsteps slowly faded. She heard them stop for a brief minute, and then they continued until she could hear them no longer. She held her breath and counted to thirty, only then, when she was sure he was gone did she cry again.

'_I know what I have to do'_ she thought as she wiped tears away and lay back down. _'I'll do it when I get released.' _She thought feeling weary and exhausted. She closed her eyes and allowed sleep to consume her.

* * *

"We need to –"

"I know. I've got it all read for you. Chad's been waiting."

Chad nodded an acknowledgement to his friends. "I came when it started snowing" he said.

Uryu adjusted his glasses. "It was so strange…" he began to explain about what had happened in the city.

"While you guys go and inform the Soul Society, I'll research this." Urahara said.

'_Urahara had anticipated our arrival? He must have known more than he let on.'_ Uryu thought as he, Chad and Orihime entered the gate and entered the Dongai PresapusWorld.

Urahara nodded briefly to Tessai as the great doors closed behind him. The figure remained hidden by the shadows.

* * *

**WAHOO! FINALLY GOT THIS CHAPTER DONE!**

**=3**

**Anyway, if it seems like I was bashing on Momo too much, sorry. I really didn't intend for it to come out like that. Momo is one of my favorite characters, but you have to realize, she's still shaken up by Aizen's betrayal. When you are hurt and upset on the level that she's at, you are going to act like that, or… maybe that's just me. ^.^"**

**Anyway… anyone like to guess what's gonna happen next?**

**XD**

**Anyway, Questions/Critiques/Comments?**

**Please Review. I like to know what my readers think. It's a cute little rectangular button at the bottom of the screen that says 'Submit Review' on it. I promise, it isn't hard to find; IT'S CENTERED! =3**


	4. Preparations

**Be still little hearts, I have gotten off my (lazy) bootie, and decided to do something! (group-gasp-please)**

**First off, let me formally apologize for the stupidly long delay. College isn't so nice to students who need time.**

**Also – If anybody remembers back when I was co-writing 'Echoes' with SaintSky – well… I had decided to take it down since she didn't want to continue writing it with me anymore (That and I wasn't sure what to do with it from there) – BUT THAT HAS ALL CHANGE D NOW!**

**I am currently working the re-write of Echoes. (It's HitsuRuki too, by the way, for those who have no idea what I'm babbling on about) I had a dream that more or less kicked me in the tail and gave me the inspiration to write it again.**

**Apologies for the short chapter, but I figured you guys would like some form of continuation just to prove I haven't kicked the bucket yet. (I'm going to work my tail off on chapter five to make up for it)**

**I still haven't found a beta yet, but special thanks to my** **non-biological little sister, SaintFlash, for looking over this chapter for me, and also hanging out to help me with the disclaimer. –turns to sissy-chu- Ok hun, go ahead and say it.**

**Disclaimer:****  
Flashy : Sakura-nee does not own Bleach, but if she did Shunsui would be her slave for an eternity and she will enjoy raping him -w- Also, as her sister, I will do my best to painfully tear her away from our loving Mabi game to write the series just for you guys c:**

**Sakura: Also, if you haven't read her fanfic, The Truth Beneath the Rose, I recommend reading it. She wrote it based off the AMV I made to the song. Check it out if you have time. (I've been meaning to do this for a while...)**

**Anyhoo – on with chapter four. =D **

* * *

"_Kisuke, how long to you plan to keep the truth hidden from them?" a soft voice whispered._

"_It wouldn't be fun if I told them everything at once. It's like writing a mystery novel. You can't just give everything away in the beginning. There'd be no point to continue reading – you would already know what happened. This is a similar situation; it would be a good learning experience for them. Stir up some brain cells… maybe help them think more." The blonde haired man replied as he adjusted his hat._

_A scoff was heard from the corner – it was followed by a sigh, "You are a very strange man."_

"_There's a method to my madness. You of all people should know that," he paused as he turned to the corner, "right Benehime?"_

"_So, you knew I was here the whole time?"_

"_Pretty much."_

"_I see," the figure said as she stepped out of the shadows, "I just hope you know what you're doing."_

* * *

Where was that infernal substitute when you needed him? Could he do _anything_ right?

Toushiro was still in a bad mood from his fight with Momo earlier. Damn that woman – how could she affect him like that?

The group he had assembled had gathered at the meeting place they were all ready and accounted for… except… Kurosaki Ichigo.

"I told him fifteen minutes." The captain growled through gritted teeth. He caught a flash of orange in his peripheral vision. Well speak of the strawberry.

"Oi – Toushiro!"

"It's Hitsugaya-taicho, to you, Kurosaki. You are also five minutes late." Toushiro snapped, still glaring at Ichigo.

"Well, I would have been here sooner but I ran into these guys." Ichigo replied as he motioned over his shoulder.

Sure enough, walking up were Chad, Uryu, and Orihime.

Ikkaku rolled his eyes, "and here I thought you were gonna try to bail on us." The bald man sneered as the soft light glowing from the pillar reflected off his head with a little _ching_ twinkling effect.

Ichigo's nostrils flared as his face turned red with indignation, "You should know I don't run away, baldy!"

"What's that, carrot-top? You've got some nerve going there!" Ikkaku's face was beginning to rival the shade of red that Ichigo's was.

"Now now. Don't get all worked up," Yumichika chimed in, "That shade of red doesn't work with your complections. It is all wrong for the both of you, which makes you both uglier than normal."

The strawberry and the cue-ball temporarily set aside their differences as they called a truce, "WHY YOU!" they screamed in unison.

The young captain sighed for the millionth time that day – Ikkaku and Ichigo continued their argument and Yumichika spouted off his usual comments about beauty. The poor young captain was surrounded by idiots. "Well that's nice, but it's time to go."

"We want to go too, Hitsugaya-san," Orihime said suddenly.

"Absolutely not." The young man answered through gritted teeth. They were already delayed. Was this girl that senseless? Apparently so, shouldn't have asked.

The obvious hurt flashed in the chesty human's eyes. The young prodigy was forced to restrain the urge to roll his eyes. Could this girl be any more of a pain – wait don't answer that. She can – not that Hitsugaya-taicho wanted to deal with it – and with that, Toushiro allowed the million-and-first sigh to escape his lips.

"If you are ready," Toushiro began, "it is time to go. We don't have much time and what little time we have is being wasted by idle chit-chat."

The harsh words of the teal eyed captain held the weight of the situation. There was no time to wait. For all they knew, Rukia could be dying. Toushiro swept his icy gaze over his patrol : Rangiku, who had actually remained silent almost the whole time, save a short greeting to Orihime; Renji, who was staring at the gound with his deep chocolate eyes glazed over; Yumichika, who was looking intently into a mirror that he had apparently pulled out of nowhere and was cooing softly to his own reflection; Ikkaku, who was still in a glaring contest with the substitute; and Ichigo, whose jaw was clenched tightly shut with his hands balled into fists.

Rangiku flipped a stray bit of hair over her shoulder before glancing at her captain, "Ready when you are, sir."

Toushiro nodded at his lieutenant before turning to his patrol, "It's time."

With the other shinigami following closely behind him, Toushiro stepped into the light.

With a few tears in her eyes –and Uryu holding her back – Orihime watched as Ichigo and the rest of Toushiro's patrol disappeared into the light. _Please be safe, Kurosaki-kun._

* * *

**So… maybe if everyone will keep nagging at me… I might not forget about my stories so much… Yeah… it's a problem. I remember about them and know I need to update when I'm nowhere near the computer but the second I get to the computer I forget. College isn't good for people who need time. I have one teacher who seems to believe that writing 6 page papers weekly over a thirty minute lecture he spouts off is the way to make sure we are paying attention to him. X.x By the time I get done with doing his homework I am sick of looking at Microsoft Word.**

**(I refuse to blame Mabinogi – though that may be part of the reason for my lack of updates.)**

**Thank you for the reviews from last chapter. They make my day, when I check my e-mail and read them. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. (insert a cute little chappy heart face here)**

**Once again, I apologize for the short chapter – the next one will be longer.**


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